Tell City Harvest: "Don't Whitewash Leviev's Abuses!"

Media accounts report that an October fundraiser at Leviev’s New York diamond store, and a portion of the sales of Leviev products in November will benefit the New York City anti-hunger organization City Harvest. Past articles in Business Week and Women’s Wear Daily reported on other Leviev fundraisers for City Harvest.

Leviev’s companies have a well-documented history of building Israeli settlements on the land of West Bank Palestinian villages like Jayyous and Bil’in, and of involvement in unethical business practices and human rights abuses in the diamond industry in Angola, Namibia and Zimbabwe. Due to this abysmal human rights record, UNICEF, Oxfam America and CARE, and the governments of Norway and the United Kingdom have all publicly disavowed any relationship with Leviev.

A coalition of social justice groups are telling City Harvest to Say No to Leviev’s Abuses!

Initiative Press Releases:

Press Release

New York, NY, December 13, 2012 – The New Zealand Superannuation Fund, which invests money on behalf of New Zealand’s government, announced on December 12 that it is divesting from Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev’s company Africa Israel and its construction subsidiary Danya Cebus over their construction of Israeli settlements. The announcement came amidst heightened international criticism of Israeli settlement expansion. The move also follows a 2010 decision by the Norwegian government to divest from Africa Israel, and a 2009 decision by the British government not to do business with the company. The organizations Oxfam America, CARE and UNICEF have also severed ties with Leviev.

The announcement came as Adalah-NY is petitioning the New York City anti-hunger nonprofit City Harvest to publicly disavow Leviev, and is preparing for its sixth annual anti-apartheid caroling protest outside Leviev’s Madison Avenue jewelry store this Saturday. Adalah-NY launched a campaign for the boycott of and divestment from Leviev’s companies in 2007.

Press Release

New York, NY, December 15, 2012 – Eighty New Yorkers sang parody carols in front of Israeli settlement-developer and diamond magnate Lev Leviev’s Madison Avenue jewelry store this afternoon. This was the sixth annual holiday demonstration at the store. Leviev’s companies have built thousands of Israeli settlement homes on Palestinian land, and are also involved in human rights abuses and unethical business practices in the diamond industry in Angola, Namibia and Zimbabwe.

The protest took place during a period of heightened international criticism of Israeli settlement expansion. This week New Zealand’s Superannuation Fund, which invests $20 billion on behalf of New Zealand’s government, announced its divestment from Leviev’s companies and two others due to their construction of settlements and Israel’s wall in violation of international law.

Press Release

New York, NY – The award-winning New York City anti-hunger nonprofit City Harvest is avoiding requests to distance itself from funding and support from controversial Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev, despite over 500 letters to the organization complaining about Leviev’s human rights record. Leviev’s companies have built thousands of Israeli settlement homes on occupied Palestinian land in violation of international law, and have also been accused of involvement in human rights abuses and unethical business practices in the diamond industry in Angola and Namibia, and now possibly in Zimbabwe as well.

Press Release

New York, NY, February 19, 2014 – Adalah-NY announced today that contrary to 2012 media reports touting Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev’s support for the New York City anti-hunger nonprofit City Harvest, the organization received no support of any kind from Leviev during that period. In November 2012, after media reported on Leviev’s support for City Harvest fundraisers, Adalah-NY mobilized letters from organizations and from over 600 individuals calling on the award-winning organization to reject funds from and publicly disavow Leviev due to his companies’ construction of Israeli settlements in violation of international law, and unethical business practices in the diamond industry in Southern Africa.

City Harvest’s just-issued 2013 annual report, and their 2012 annual report both show no support from Leviev. City Harvest spokesperson Cara Taback confirmed in a February 18 phone call with Adalah-NY that the annual reports provide a full and accurate list of all the organization’s donors, and that Leviev indeed had not been a City Harvest donor during the July 2011 – June 2013 period covered by the two reports.